Stargate Millennium: Past to Present
by StargateMillennium
Summary: A new spin-off series: While exploring the ruins on an alien planet, something happens that makes Nova relive her entire past working at the SGC. She, and something else, watches what turned her into the person she is today.
1. Chapter 1

**WARNING: This is a new spin off which means new characters and new setting. If you are new then I recommend you read the first episode so you know what's happening. Otherwise, please review and enjoy.**

**A/N: Oh yeah, I also have put a trailer for this series on youtube.**

** watch?v=cFh4mIbxyko**

**Quick thing about the trailer: it is not just a bunch of random clips with music; I did not put it in there unless it was going to happen in one of my episodes (with a few obvious exceptions). It may be slightly different but similar enough that you can watch the trailer and point out which clip/audio came from which episode. If you see it in the trailer, it will happen in one of the episodes.  
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**Third episode. In this one, there's going to be a lot of 'flashes', like how Teal'c 'flashed' between a firefighter life and his SGC life in "Changeling" or how Daniel flashed between scenarios of Sha're in "Forever in a Day". I appreciate any and all support and constructive criticism is always welcome. Please tell me what you think of my story. What did I do well? What can I do better? Enjoy.**

**-.-**

**PROLOGUE**

It has been twenty years; it's been twenty years since the first team of humans was sent to Abydos. Thanks to the massive stone ring known as the stargate, Earth has made enormous leaps technology. They have a fleet of ships ready to defend their planet. They unlocked the secret of the lost city of Atlantis and the mysterious ninth chevron that led to Destiny. But, they had barely scratched the surface of the Alliance of Four Great Races. To this end, Earth has launched a new expedition to the fabled city Millennium, built by all four races. It's a new expedition in a new galaxy, and these are their adventures...

-.-

Her name is Terra Nova. Don't let her sex or her size fool you; she is the one woman army. Down to earth and straight to business, superiors have called her the model of a perfect soldier. Strict, disciplined, rational, she may even appear cold and distant; but the people closest to her know there is more to her than her no-nonsense attitude. Beneath her professional aura is a kind and sympathetic soul willing to do whatever it takes to protect even the people she doesn't know. She grew up with the perfect balance of love and hate, of war and peace, of crime and justice, and her time at the SGC has turned her into the woman we know today.

-.-

Colonel Carter glanced at the document in her hand, double checking the address. This was the right place. She looked at the beautiful but small and modest white house. The lawn was so green it almost seemed unnatural. A single sprinkler was running, spraying a small fountain of water across the grass.

It was the middle of summer so being in the United States Air Force dress uniform was very uncomfortable for her.

She slowly made her up to the white wooden porch. There was a certain feel to the wood. You could tell by the way it looked; it was handmade. The porch, the fence gate, even the small bench that sat on the porch was all hand made. Well, she did read that the person she was recruiting did enjoy wood work.

Colonel Carter knocked on the wooden door, almost surprised that it wasn't handmade too.

Inside, the once quiet house quickly echoed with rapid footsteps. Samantha Carter couldn't see it but, inside, a young woman quickly jogged down the stairs wearing a casual pink T-shirt and jeans, her long brown hair bouncing as she reached the bottom.

The white wooden door squeaked as she opened it, revealing the formally dressed USAF Colonel.

"Captain Terra Nova?" the woman at the door asked.

"Yeah," she said casually.

"I'm Colonel Samantha Carter," the woman at the door greeted, briefly flashing her ID.

Hearing the name, Terra Nova almost instinctively stood at attention. Colonel Samantha Carter was a legend in the US Air Force. Ever since Terra joined, she's heard about Carter's seemingly endless accomplishments.

"Colonel," she stuttered, not sure how to react. Every person had their heroes, or at least people they heard about with a pile of breath-taking achievements. Hearing about it was one thing but actually meeting that person was another. "Come in," she finally said.

Carter gave a small laugh, seeing how nervous she was.

"Thank you, but I need you to come with me," Carter said, giving a small gesture toward the black van parked in the driveway.

Nova opened her mouth but couldn't think of anything to say. But, even if she could think of something to say, 'no' was probably not it.

It didn't take long for Nova to get ready grabbing her purse and wallet. She and Colonel Carter sat in the back of the van.

With the passengers in, the driver backed the vehicle out of the driveway and took off down the road.

"May I ask what this is about?" Terra asked, wondering why a USAF legend was suddenly at her door. She watched as Colonel Carter reached into a suitcase and began ruffling through the papers within.

"We've been impressed by your recent performance," Carter began. "You've been involved in a number of classified programs and operations and your most recent one was a major success despite all odds."

"That is correct," Nova answered. Colonel Carter was a high ranking officer with the highest military clearance. Talking about her missions with the Colonel was ok.

"We're recruiting specialists for a…unique assignment," Carter explained as if she was testing Nova's reaction. "Like your other assignments, this new assignment is classified." She took out a clipboard and pen and held them out to Nova.

Nova knew it was a non-disclosure agreement. She had to keep her mouth shut about her assignment and everything involving it.

Nova took the pen and quickly signed the piece of paper. By this time, she's signed so many of these she could practically recite the boxes of text stating what could and could not do in relation to her mission.

Carter took the agreement back once Nova was done signing. After rummaging through the suitcase again, she gave the Captain a folder.

Nova flipped open the folder, expecting to see a massive article on some political or military leader or the briefings of a bad situation that needed defusing. Out of all the articles she could have seen, she did not expect this.

The paper on top did not detail anything political or military at all. Instead, it was about an archaeological dig over forty years ago.

"This artifact was discovered on a dig in Giza in 1939," Colonel Carter explained as Nova skimmed the paragraphs of text. "It wasn't until 1995 that we discovered the artifact's true purpose."

"It was a means of creating a stable wormhole which allowed instantaneous travel to other planets," Nova muttered, or at least tried to mutter. The words passed through her head before Carter could even utter them, as if she knew what Carter was going to say. Nova tried to say something but her mouth was frozen. She had no control over her body.

"I've done this before," Nova said, or at least tried to say. The words ran though her head but she could not get her mouth to say them. She could only watch as her body flipped the page as if everything was normal. She had no control. Her body was moving on its own, reliving a moment in her past and she was just a helpless observer watching it happen.

Something was wrong. The light that came through the car windows seem to get brighter with each passing second. Soon, the light was so bright that the world seem to just melt away to white.

-.-

Nova bolted upright with a loud gasp, looking around, trying to figure out what was going on. What she saw was a memory; Nova remembered it clearly. The memory was from four years ago, when she was first assigned to the Stargate Program.

"Major!" a voice called out. A raggedy man rushed over to her side, quickly slinging his P90 over his shoulder. His face looked almost square and his skin seemed like leather. He ran his finger nervously through his short brown hair as he tried to help Nova sit up against the wall.

"Lieutenant Charles Martin," she croaked, her voice dry. "What's going on?" She tried to stand but her legs would not move. She gritted her teeth as she gripped the hillside for support in an attempt to stand up but her legs stayed limp, as if she lost all control of them.

"You shouldn't stand up, Major," Martin said in his usual Australian accent.

"Doesn't mean I can't try," she groaned. She couldn't command her legs to stand her up. So maybe she could use her arms to stand up and command her legs to hold her up. She gripped the hillside and lifted herself to her feet, but the moment she even loosened her grip, she immediately fell over.

"Major, you can't stand," Martin insisted. "The device, whatever it was, got you pretty good." Nova groaned in defeat. She couldn't do anything but sit. She looked around her environment, trying to piece together the situation.

It looked like she was in some sort of valley, the sunlight shining down on the steep hillsides that surrounded her. It was only as she was examining the impossibly uneven terrain she noticed the countless buildings that stuck out of the ground. But those weren't any buildings; those were Asgard buildings. There was no doubt about it. The design of the buildings were undoubtedly Asgard. A doorway even stuck out of the hillside that she leaned against, masses of roots hanging over the doorway.

Taking a second look, it didn't seem as if the Asgard buildings were coming out of the dirt; it was more like the dirt was covering the Asgard buildings.

Still, she couldn't remember much more than that. She began going through her memory, recalling everything that happened since her recruitment to the Stargate Program.

She was part of an expedition to the Millennium, the city build by all four races in the Alliance of the Four Great Races located in the galaxy of NGC 300. But, she couldn't remember why she was on this planet or even what planet this was.

"Will you two keep it down?" a voice hissed. Nova recognized Steven Chen. Chen's stiff black hair out over his forehead, casting a shadow over his face. He cradled his P90 as he peeked around the hillside. She could tell by the way he moved; Chen wasn't a soldier but he was competent enough to use that gun.

"Corin, what do you think?" Chen asked Corin Nevec. Corin could feel the beads of sweat in his spiky light brown hair, his nine millimeter shaking nervously in his hands.

"I don't know," Corin stuttered.

"You don't know?" Chen repeated in disbelief.

"Hey, was a teacher, not a military officer!" Corin snapped. Nova remembered; Corin Nevec was from NGC 300 and only recently joined her team. He was a professor before he joined their team; she thought his knowledge of this galaxy would be useful. His posture and movement also made that obvious by the way he hunched over for cover and the way he held his pistol loosely in his hands..

"Martin," Nova said, trying to sit up. "What going on?"

Martin looked at the hillsides nervously.

"The Ror'char are here," Martin said. "We were going to gate back to the Millennium when they gated in." Nova remembered the Ror'char. When they first arrived in this galaxy, the Ror'char offered to become allies. However, the terms of their alliance included complete submission to their rule. She was half hoping that they would never run into the Ror'char again.

"They don't know we're here yet but that might be a matter of time," Martin said but the world seemed to be fading. She could feel herself slipping away back into the memory, the colors around her fading to white. "Major?" he asked when he saw Nova begin to lose consciousness. "MAJOR!"

-.-

Carter had just finished explaining everything about the stargate, at least everything she needed to know at the moment.

"What do you think?" Carter asked, probing her reaction. Nova looked at the papers in the folder again. It seemed too incredible to be true. It seemed like something out of a science fiction movie: a gate that is used to travel to other planets. If this wasn't coming from a higher ranking officer, she might have just passed it as a joke. But, it was real and she was being offered the chance to join.

"When do I start?" Nova asked.

STARGATE

MILLENNIUM

Martin looked at Nova helplessly, not sure what to do. Nova was down, meaning he had to take charge.

"Charles," Chen said. "We have to get out of here."

"Right," Martin said, trying to think what Nova would do. Leading seemed so natural for her. She just knew what to do and knew the outcome of her actions. He knew what he had to take charge, he just didn't want to do it.

"Uhh, guys," Corin said. Chen and Martin weren't listening though.

"Asgard tech here," Martin said, hoping there was a way to take on the Ror'char forces without a direct fight. "You think you can make their ray guns work or something?"

"Assuming we find any," Chen said bitterly. "And assuming they aren't all broken."

"Guys," Corin called out again.

"What about those Asgardy beamy weapon things?" Martin asked.

"You mean the transporter arrays?" Chen asked, knowing that Martin was referring to the Asgard's famed ability, when they were still around, to make entire armies of jaffa disappear with a giant beam of light. "Only if it's not broken. This place is now buried after a couple thousand years."

"GUYS!" Corin called out in panic.

"What?!" Martin and Chen asked in annoyance, turning to face Corin…instantly seeing what had him so alarmed. Martin and Chen threw themselves against the hillside to make sure they weren't seen.

One by one they emerged out from behind hillside, the green veins of energy pulsing in their dull gray visors that covered their faces, attached to a metal frame that cradled their heads, forming a helmet. The packs of equipment that clung to their black uniforms barely made a noise as the squad of Ror'char troopers slowly made their way through the hillsides. Even the oily black metal plates that covered their joints seemed to make next to no noise.

They obviously weren't alert. Their shoulders were relaxed and their wasp-shaped rifles were lowered. It looked like they were here exploring.

"I say we head inside," Martin whispered, gesturing toward the doorway.

He glanced back at the Ror'char troopers. Something was obviously up. They all suddenly stood at attention and stepped to the side, forming two perfectly straight lines.

Martin was a soldier; strict discipline came with the job. But the Ror'char's discipline, even by his standards, was incredible. If it wasn't for the fact that he's already seen what's under the helmets, he would've thought the troopers were robots from the way they all moved in perfect sync. The way they were able to fall into formation made it looked like they had trained for it all their lives. In a way, they did. The team was faced with an entire squad of highly trained and heavily armed alien super-soldiers willing to go to any length to achieve their goals.

Once the two lines of troopers were assembled, another figure emerged from behind the hillside. He wore the same black uniform and packs of equipment as the other Ror'char troopers but a black trench coat obscured most of it from view. Instead of the familiar Ror'char helmet, he wore a black hat that looked almost exactly like military dress hats on Earth.

"Anyone recognize Mister Man in the Middle?" Martin asked quietly. Without the helmet, all of them could see the gray-skinned face of the figure with oily black eyes.

"Krell," Corin said darkly, instantly recognizing the face. There was no doubt in anyone's mind. They remembered Exodan Krell from when the Ror'char tried to attack Millennium.

"New suit," Chen commented, remembering Krell wore the familiar Ror'char armor during his attack on Millennium.

"Probably promoted," Corin said. They watched as Krell began to brief the Ror'char troopers.

"Ok," Martin said hurriedly. "We're out of here." Chen nodded in agreement. Martin and Chen quickly picked up Nova, Martin carrying her by her shoulders while Chen carried her legs, and rushed through the door and into the buildings. Corin quickly followed but right before he disappeared through the doorway, Corin glanced back at Krell once last time.

Krell had stopped talking. In fact, he was looking their direction with a smile on his face. Corin would even swear that Krell winked at him, as if the Ror'char leader knew they were there.

-.-

Nova was back reliving her memories. She had no control over what was happening. She could feel, see, and hear everything that was happening as if it was happening right now. She had even forgotten that it was a memory. For her, what she saw was real.

Captain Terra Nova sprinted down the hall of the SGC, muttering in disbelief. Barely a month into her training and this happens! She was placed in some alien chair to do some virtual reality training. When she finished her training, she learns that the SGC was under attack. Apparently an SG team brought back an artifact thinking it was an energy source. Instead, it housed a whole bunch of alien entities that have begun taking over all the SG personnel.

As she reached the armory door, she quickly looked around to make sure no one was sneaking up on her. She had procured a security card from a guard she had to knockout and opened the armory door with it. She quietly shut the door behind her so she wouldn't have to worry about unexpected guests.

Nova quickly grabbed the vests and packs of equipment from the racks and shelves that lined the small room, gearing up as quickly as she could. Once she finished getting her equipment on, she made her way to the racks of weapons.

She grabbed a P90 from a shelf and began scanning the other shelves for ammo.

"Intar," she muttered, remembering the red-colored stun bullets. If she remembered correctly, the intar was an alien stun weapon that could take the form of any weapon and the SGC now had a few on hand for training, adapting them for almost all their firearms.

She didn't want to kill any of the SG personnel, especially since it wasn't their fault that they were acting this way.

"Here it is," she said triumphantly as she took three magazines of intar P90 bullets. She was about to leave when another weapon caught her eye. On the racks laying against the wall to her rigjt were black snake-like weapons, the size of pistol. She took one, recognizing it as a zat, at least that's what she heard people call it. Hearing all the strange names of the alien weapons and technology they've acquired, she suspected 'zat' was short for something but she never bothered asking.

"One shot stun, two shots kill," she muttered, making her way to the door, remembering what she was told about the alien weapon. "One shot stun, two shots kill. One shot stun, two shots kill. One shot stun, two shots kill."

She was about to open the armory door but froze before she could turn the door knob. Through the door, she could hear talking. She didn't know who it was, she guessed that it was probably a pair of airmen, but she knew she couldn't just pop out of the door now.

Nova pressed her ear against the door, trying to hear what was being said.

"The commander has moved himself into the body of the one known as Landry."

"Tell him that we are nearly done possessing all the workers in his base."

"What of the one they call O'Neill?"

Nova felt a chill go down her spine. General O'Neill was another legend in the US Air Force who came to the SGC to inspect the new recruits and the ones who have been reassigned, including her. He was actually there to oversee her training in particular after hearing how recommended she was for the SGC.

"He is one of us now."

"Then we will proceed as planned. He will go to Homeworld Security and continue our work there. Once we have the top military and political officials in this country, there is no stopping us."

"We will continue examining his records so our agent will be able effectively mimic his behavior once he reaches the location."

Nova heard the footsteps of whoever was talking as they walked away. She waited a few seconds to make sure they were gone before opening the door. She didn't know how to stop the invasion but she knew she had to find and stop O'Neill.

She had just rounded the corner and stopped in her tracks.

"Colonel Harding," she gasped, instantly raising her intar.

"WHOAWHOAWHOA!" the scruffy man with messy black hair yelled when he saw the gun aimed at him, throwing his hands out as if to say 'stop'. "It's good, I'm not possessed or anything!" Nova looked at Harding suspiciously.

"And how do I know that?" she asked suspiciously.

"I should be asking you that question," Bryan Harding said, putting his hands down.

"If I was one of them, I would've shot you by now," she said, her finger stroking the trigger. "How do I know you're not one of them?"

Harding opened his mouth to answer but had no idea what to say.

"Because…" he stuttered. "Because you're a fruit cake!" Nova gave Harding a sideways look. With that comment she promptly lowered her gun but quickly raised her first slamming it across his face.

Harding reached up as if to fix his jaw.

"Ow," was all he said.

"They can take over the bodies but they don't seem to be able access their hosts' memories so they can't act like them," Nova explained. "You're the only one who would try to use that to prove that you're you."

"You know that's striking a superior officer," Harding groaned.

"I don't think that's really going to matter," Nova replied as she gave him her intar-loaded P90. "A foothold situation of this scale, I don't see any way to stop it except the self-destruct."

"I know, I was going to get some stuff at the armory before going to do that," Harding answered as he quickly cocked the gun. "There are two ways to activate the SGC self-destruct and they're both that way," he added, pointing down the hall behind Nova.

"I need to get to the surface," she said, taking out her zat. "They've gotten General O'Neill. If he reaches Homeworld Security then he'll spread these entities through the higher ranking officials of our government."

"His limo's supposed to arrive in a few minutes," Harding said blankly. Nova felt her jaw drop. They were that pressured on time. "I'll activate the self-destruct. You stop O'Neill from getting away."

"Got it," Nova said taking off down the hall. But, she only ran a few feet before pausing. "And, Colonel." Harding turned and looked at Nova. "Good luck," she said.

Harding gave a small laugh.

"Good luck to you," he said. Without another word, the two of them took off in opposite directions.

An airman had just entered the elevator when a bolt of electricity streaked through the air, hitting him from behind. The airman gave a single startled gasp before hitting the ground. The guard in the elevator tried to draw his pistol but Nova hit him with a zat blast before it even left the holster.

She hit the button to the top floor. She knew she had one more elevator to take before reaching the surface.

"Come on!" she groaned impatiently as the elevator seemed to slowly make its way up. Reaching the top and taking the second elevator to the surface seemed like forever. She was almost sure she was too late to stop O'Neill.

On the surface, she ran down the hall as fast as she could. Turning around another corner, she finally saw him: General Jack O'Neill. He was in his blue dress uniform, his hat under his left arm.

It seemed so wrong shooting your hero, shooting your teacher, shooting your superior officer, shooting your boss. Just by shooting O'Neill she would be doing all those things.

Zatting, she told herself. She wasn't shooting him, she was zatting him.

Seeing Nova rushing up to him like that, O'Neill dropped his hat and suddenly yanked out a pistol. She couldn't tell which it was but it wouldn't matter. He had his gun aimed and she didn't. Even if the alien entity in him wasn't good with a gun, it was almost impossible to miss at this distance. She knew she there was no way for her to jump out of the line of fire…unless.

She let her feet slip out from under her, letting herself fall backwards. O'Neill pulled the trigger, the bullet streaking through where her head was only a few moments ago.

She slid a few feet down the hall on her back as she aimed the zat and fired. The arc of blue electricity hit the General square in the chest. O'Neill gave a groan of pain as he fell to his knees, a small cloud of steam forming above him. Nova watched, praying that one shot would be enough to knock him out. The effect of a zat shot was incredibly unpredictable. Sometimes the person hit would be stuck by immense pain but remain conscious. Other times, one shot would knock the person out cold. If the first shot didn't knock O'Neill out she might be forced to second lethal blow.

Luckily, it only took another second before O'Neill finally fell over.

Nova slowly got up, staring down at O'Neill.

"I'll apologize later," she said. It wouldn't matter to her though. Colonel Harding will be activating the self-destruct and stop this alien invasion.

Suddenly, Nova's eyed opened. Her environment had completely changed. She wasn't in the hall staring down at an unconscious O'Neill. She was in the training room, strapped to the virtual reality chair. Standing in front of her was a small crowd including Colonel Carter, General Landry, General O'Neill, and Colonel Harding. To her left was a computer monitor that held a picture of her standing over the General's unconscious body.

Seeing Captain Nova awake, the group broke into applause.

"You got to be kidding," Nova said when she realized the whole scenario about the alien foothold was just another test in the simulator.

"Well done, Captain," Landry said as the technicians unstrapped her from the chair. Nova could only gawk in disbelief.

"What was that about?" she asked, feeling somewhat agitated that they just put her through that. She was so convinced that the situation she was facing was real; she was convinced she was going to die from the SGC's self-destruct.

"Call it your final test," Colonel Carter said as Nova got to her feet. "We had to see your reaction if you genuinely believed the situation you were facing was real. Because of your performance in your previous tests, we felt that you were qualified to face what would be an impossible-to-win situation. And you performed well above all expectations."

"Apologize later?" O'Neill asked, pretending to be offended.

Nova felt her mouth smile a crack.

"What now?" she asked, feeling rather anxious to start her duties.

"After reviewing your work, you have decided to assign you to an active SG team," Landry explained quickly. Harding stepped forward with a smile.

"Welcome to SG-23," he said. Nova smiled proudly, eager to begin her new job.

-.-

In the real world, Chen and Martin carried Nova's unconscious body through the halls of the Asgard base. The curved walls of the hallway looked like oak but, when Chen put his hand on it, it felt more like bronze. Large glowing opals were attached to the ceiling, filling the halls with light. Occasionally, they would find a hole in the ceiling where the building's structure finally gave way, letting in some real sunlight.

For Corin, it was both obvious and fascinating how the Asgard contributed building Millennium.

"What are the Ror'char doing on this planet anyways?" Martin had to ask, half out of breath from carrying Major Nova all this way. "I thought they were busy doing that take-over-the-universe thing."

"If I had to guess, I'd say they're here for the same reason we are," Corin said, not the least bit exhausted since he did not have to help Steven or Charles carry Terra.

"The Asgard ruins," Chen concluded. "The Alliance's technology is still superior to the Ror'char. They're probably studying it."

"Which means that this team is probably just securing the place for a science team," Corin added.

"Wait a minute," Chen said, suddenly realizing something. "Corin, how new are the Ror'char zero-point generators?" Corin gave Steven a sideways look, confused by how that related to what they were talking about.

"They're considered state of the art," Corin explained. "Only military installations and new colonies, like the one I was in, get them."

"Something on your mind, Chen?" Martin asked.

"I was studying the Ror'char ZPG and its design was remarkably similar to the Ancient ZPM," Chen explained. "I think the ZPG was the Ror'char attempt to make their own ZPM."

"Wait a minute," Martin coughed. "You're saying those blokes are now making their own ZPM's?"

"Not exactly," Chen quickly corrected. "The ZPG is nowhere near as efficient as the ZPM. It only has a third of the life span and a fraction of the energy output. Still, it probably outclasses all the other energy sources the Ror'char used at the time and our naquadah generators. By the way, can we put her down now? My arms are killing me," Chen groaned as they carried Nova up to another set of closed doors. Martin wanted to move on but agreed with Chen. They couldn't spend the whole mission carrying her.

"Put her down," he said. "We'll rest in the next room." Chen and Martin gently placed Nova on the ground, leaning her against the wall. Corin quickly went to the door control on the wall.

"We should check the stargate again," Martin suggested as the doors slowly opened with a gentle hiss. "The Ror'char might not be guarding it anymore."

The three of them were about to continue but froze in their tracks as they looked into the chamber in front of them. It was a large room with a familiar marble terminal covered in chalk-like lines with white stones placed on top. But it wasn't the room that caught the team's attention.

Martin felt a chill of dread go down his spine when he saw that two Ror'char troopers were already in the room. They were busy working at a computer terminal but the hiss of the door caught their attention.

"Contact!" one of the troopers yelled when he saw the team, his voice distorted by the helmet into a deep almost demonic voice, immediately raising their weapons. Corin, Martin, and Chen jumped out of the way just as the bolts of blue energy flew down the hall.

Martin yelled out in surprise and pain as one of the bolts barely grazed his shoulder. The two bolts of energy hit the wall behind them, a stream of fire spewing out from the impact. The moment the two bolts had flown past, Martin leaned out, aimed his P90, and fired. Chen also recognized the opportunity and took it, aiming and firing at the other soldier.

The gunfire was deafening as they rained bullets at the two soldiers, each bang sending a rippling shockwave through the air that they could feel on their arms. The recoil from their weapons rattled their body to the bone.

The soldier Chen was aiming at ducked as the bullets streaked past his head, the wall behind him spitting a fountain of sparks as the bullets hit it instead. Debris flew from the impact site, hidden behind a plume of dust. But Martin hit his mark, a stream of bullets tearing into the Ror'char trooper's chest, a cloud of gray powder flying from impact as the bullets tore through the uniform and armor. The trooper took a step back yelling in pain, the helmet distorting the noise into an inhuman roar.

Martin usually felt a sense of triumph when he saw the bullets hit. He's dispatched plenty of foes, from jaffa who were loyal to what few minor Goa'uld remained to Lucian Alliance pirates and raiders, with only a small spray of P90 fire. Just a small burst of fire and his enemies fell. But he knew that this time, it wasn't enough.

In a last ditch attempt to save himself, the trooper raised his rifle and fired at the doorway. Martin had to duck back behind the door at the energy bolt hit the door frame. The fire ball that spewed from the impact was so close Martin could feel the heat of the flames lick his cheek.

"Suppressive fire!" the injured trooper yelled, ignoring his injuries as he continued firing at the door frame. His partner quickly followed suit. Chen was forced to duck behind cover as energy bolts began pounding the area, fireballs illuminating the hallway even brighter than the lights in the ceiling. He couldn't tell how fast those rifles could fire but it was too fast for them to try to pop out to shoot again. A wall of smoke quickly covered the entire doorway, the three humans vanishing behind the haze.

Corin looked around, desperately trying to find a way to help. He was terrible with a gun and joining the gun fight would most certainly get him killed. He could only think of one thing to do. Corin reached up and pressed the opal door control. The two troopers vanished as the door hissed close in front of them.

"Alright mates, train's leaving," Martin said, going to pick up Nova again. "Let's move!" He winced in pain as he tried to pick her up. He felt the warm blood from the graze slowly drip down his arm.

"No arguments from me," Chen said, grabbing her legs. Without another word they quickly left the area. Martin glanced back at the door, expecting the troopers to open it and begin shooting at them again. That thought never left even once they were around the corner and out of sight.

It was only once they were gone the door opened again. A wall of smoke from the violence slowly drifted from the room, covering the hall in an eerie fog. The ominous green glow from their helmets became visible before the emerged from the smoke, their black visors concealing their menacing glares as they stared down the hall, brandishing their weapons.

"Injuries?" the unscathed Ror'char trooper asked his partner. The other trooper looked at his uniform. His chest was covered in holes where the P90 rounds hit, the uniform now looking ragged and torn with blood stains that were growing with each passing moment, but the armor had stopped most of the bullets from doing any real damage.

"Superficial," the trooper concluded.

-.-

"I'm Doctor Daniel Jackson. The Lucian Alliance is an organization of humans from a number of sovereign planets who have taken control of the resources and technology left behind after the Goa'uld were defeated. Not unlike the Mafia or the street gangs from our fair planet, the Alliance is made of power-hungry criminals who use violence as a means of enforcing their dominion. Leadership is tenuous and constantly changing but the association itself is formidable and must be taken seriously."

There was a gentle click as Nova hit the pause button, taking a moment to absorb everything, taking a moment to look around her new quarters at the SGC.

In her memories, she finally started going through the stargate with Colonel Harding as part of SG-23…and she loved it. This has got to be her best assignment yet. She loved going to other planets, never knowing what's going to happen on the other side. She loved meeting the alien races. She loved the adventure; going somewhere not for a specific mission but to just see what's there.

"Hey," Harding greeted as he entered the door. "You're the talk of the SG teams right now."

"Really?" she asked in disbelief.

"Yeah," Harding said. "SG-1 is a legend for the Stargate Program. I mean, everyone who joins the program knows about SG-1. Every military and political leader that learns about the program needs to memorize half of SG-1's mission reports. Every SG team that goes through the gate needs to memorize twenty SG-1 mission reports. People come and go from the SGC but only a small handful are ever trained by Colonel Carter or General O'Neill. You got trained by both of them."

"Hey, imagine how I feel," Terra said. "I heard all about them in the ROTC. Now I know what they did that made them this famous."

"What are you doing?" Harding asked as he leaned against the doorway. Nova looked up from her laptop.

"Just getting up to speed," she said quickly.

"You know, most SGC personnel get bored by the fifth video," Harding chuckled.

"Not me," she said with a laugh. "The US government has been running a classified program involving space aliens, I want to know everything."

"Well, I'm hitting the bunk," Harding said, giving Nova a wave. He was about to leave but stopped.

"You know, I've been wondering," he said. "Terra Nova…not exactly the most common name in the world."

"In Galician it means 'new land'…'new earth'," she explained turning to face him.

"Still, not the most common name," Harding persisted. Nova gave a sigh.

"Let's just say I wasn't the best person in the world growing up," she explained solemnly. "My name was originally Theresa Naves. I hung out with the wrong people as a kid and teen. I thought they were ok, that people were just being stubborn and self-righteous. I mean, throwing rocks at houses and cars or covering them in spray paint was one thing but it wasn't until my 'friends' started shaking people on the street down for money did I realize what type of person I was. I did bad things and didn't take responsibility for what happened. My joining the military marked the start of a new life, maybe even make up for some of the things I did. Before I joined I changed my first name to 'Terra' and my last name to 'Nova'. A new life for myself…a new world for myself."

Harding just stared at her after the explanation.

"Why didn't you just pick a name that meant 'new world'?" he asked. "Nuevo…I don't know…"

Nova keeled over, trying to not burst out laughing. Harding didn't even try holding back as he fell against the wall cackling.

"Hey, at least 'Terra' and' Nova' are both normal names," she was able to say between her laughs. "I haven't found anyone named 'Novo Mundo." Harding didn't even hear her from his uncontrollable laughter.

"I'm going to bed," Harding snorted, still laughing.

"Good night, Harding," she laughed, turning back to her video. Next video was about the Asgard. She's already heard plenty about them and was eager to hear about the little-gray men.

As she started up the video, Nova could not help but feel lightheaded. Something felt…off. It was only then she remembered that feeling. It was the same feeling she had when she was in the car with Colonel Carter, being told about the Stargate Program. She suddenly remembered. She remembered that this was a memory. Still, she could not move. She felt every sensation, as if it was actually happening, as she moved her mouse and hit play.

She remembered that this video was the video talking about the Asgard. But, for some reason, that wasn't the video that she saw. She felt her body lean back in the chair, as if it the Asgard video was on screen and playing like she remembered it. It was as if her past was happening again but she had no control as her body did the exact same thing again; she was a helpless observer inside her own body. If she really was reliving her memories, then it was as if something had altered a small part of it to show her something.

The video that played on the screen didn't have Daniel Jackson on screen explaining the Asgard; instead it showed Chen in the control room of the Millennium. She could do nothing but watch the events of the video unfold before her.

-.-

In the video, Chen was in the control room fully geared for his next mission but still squeezing in as much work as he could before he left.

"Give another go," Chen told Donavan, a control room technician. Donavan reached over and pressed a button at the side of the DHD. Chen eyed the sleek silvery stargate as a line in the floor at the base of it began to glow. A beam of light shot out of the glowing line, quickly passing over the stargate. As it did so, a large metal cover appeared on front of the gate, completely encompassing the region where the event horizon would be.

"Got the readings," Chen said, looking at a computer. "Go ahead, take it off." Donavan pressed the button again. The line in the floor lit back up and passed its light over the massive cover, the giant metal plate vanished again.

"New toy, Chen?" Nova called out as she and the rest of the team walked in.

"You might say that," Chen said gruffly. "This is the Asgard's version of an iris. It uses the transport array to place a solid piece of metal, I'm guessing trinium, over the front of the gate."

"What're we gonna call this one then?" Martin asked. "The SGC has the iris, Atlantis has the gate shield, we have the…"

Chen just shrugged, thinking that the idea was just silly.

"What have you been calling it?" Nova asked, playing along with everything.

"We've just been calling it a barrier," Chen said, picking up the P90 he had placed on the table. Nova shrugged and looked at Martin.

"Barrier works," she said. "Ready, Chen? We still need to check out H57-549."

"We need to find a better way of naming planets," Martin commented.

"MALP showed ruins in the distance," Chen said as he and the rest of the team walked to the gate room as Donavan began dialing the gate. "For a second we did detect high frequency oscillations in the ruins. That might mean some of the stuff there is still working." The massive silvery ring began to power up, the inner ring spinning as the white opals around it glowed as each chevron was locked in. As the point of origin was locked, the unstable energy vortex of the stargate rushed out of the event horizon before pausing and flying back in, settling into event horizon as a giant wall of shimmering water.

"Gentlemen," Nova said. "Roll out." The video screen quickly cut what looked like the animation for a roller coaster. The camera flew forwards as two streams of blue energy passed above and below it like some sort of railing. The camera followed the two streams of energy, making sharp twists and turns. Lights from what looked like passing stars flew by before, finally, there was a flash of white and the camera showed the next scene.

They had just arrived on the planet and were exploring the ruins they saw on the MALP. The ground was unnaturally uneven. There didn't seem to be any level ground at all, everything was sloped in some direction. The only ground that seemed to be even remotely level was the deep valley between the hills and steep drops. The ground was made even more even by the tops of what looked like Asgard buildings. Hills often had the corner of a structure protruding out of them. Massive spires randomly stuck up out of the ground. The remains of giant domes could be seen inside some of the valleys. Hillsides were often times actually the sides of massive rooftops. The MALP had to stay right beside the stargate so that it wouldn't end up tumbling into a ravine.

"Corin, what do you think?" Nova asked as she scanned towers and buildings that stuck out of the ground.

"Well, design looks Asgard," Corin said. "If the Millennium was built at the height of their alliance in the 4GR, then this is probably a colony or outpost."

"You think the Asgard built an outpost under the ground?" Martin asked.

"Looks buried to me," Chen commented, staring at a spire that stuck out of the ground like a giant metal tree.

"Yeah, I agree with Steven here," Corin said. "There were changes in the landscape, soil deposit, and the outpost got buried over a couple thousand years.

"Well, at least all the ways in aren't buried," Chen remarked, looking around the spire and seeing a sticking out the side of a hill.

The video then cut to the next scene inside the Asgard buildings themselves. Nova watched her team explore the halls of the abandoned structure.

"Here we go," Chen said when he eyed an Asgard computer console down the hall. The familiar sight of a smooth marble table with white chalk lines and several white stones laid out on it was gratifying for Chen. He slid one of the stones and looked up at the monitor on the wall in front of it but nothing happened.

"Well, guess the power's dead after a couple thousand years," Corin said when the computer didn't power up.

"Then I go to plan B," Chen said as he placed his P90 on the ground and knelt beside he computer terminal.

"Plan B?" Nova asked.

"Remove the memory crystal," Chen explained as he began feeling the side of the terminal for the panel that would have the crystal behind it. "It's the Asgard's version of a memory card. If I can't read the computer logs here, I'll remove the Asgard memory crystal and read it on the Millennium. It's more advantageous to read it there anyways."

"How's that?" Corin asked.

"Well, we have a time table on the planet. If I just remove the memory crystals from the computers I find, we can explore the planet, the archaeologists can have at the ruins, and I can take my time going through the crystal back on Millennium."

Chen had just found and opened the panel when he heard the computer hum to life. The screen flashed on, Asgard text drifting down it.

"What the?" Chen stuttered in surprise when the crystal began to glow. He looked up and saw Martin at the terminal. "Do you mind?" Chen asked in annoyance.

"What?" Martin asked. There was a hum as the lights came on too. "I just turned it on for you. Granted, it was an accident, but now it's on." Chen just groaned.

"I swear, you guys are like monkeys!" he ranted. "You have to touch everything; touch touch touch touch touch touch touch touch! You can't just look."

"I only moved a stone!" Martin said in his defense. "That means the power's working, right?" Those words barely left his mouth when an arc of electricity shot from the wall and into the computer terminal, sparks spewing from the circuitry. Chen covered his face as more sparks shot out from the crystal in front of him. Martin jumped back in surprise while Corin held his hands to shield his face from the shower of sparks.

"And this is what happens when people touch things!" Chen yelled in annoyance.

"Guys," Corin suddenly said, looking at the screen. Chen looked at Corin then at the screen in front of the station. Nova walked up to the computer terminal, staring at the display. On it was a single line of blinking text.

"What am I looking at?" Nova asked. Corin felt like an anvil was just dropped on his head when he realized a simple fact he overlooked.

"Oh," he said. "You guys can't read Asgard."

"You're the only who spent the past week studying that stuff," Martin pointed out.

"Learning five languages isn't as easy as it sounds," Corin said innocently. "Technically four since I already knew some basic Ancient, but it's still not easy."

"Well, let's see if your studying paid off, what does it say?" Nova asked, getting impatient.

"It says 'hello'," Corin translated with a shrug. "Might be an AI the Asgard put in their computers."

"Or, it could be Asgard bootsplash," Chen said in an unamused voice. Bootsplash is a graphical representation of the boot system. A person turns their computer on and an image appears on screen while the computer is still booting.

"One way to find out," Corin said. "Just move a stone." Nova looked at the terminal, not sure which one to move.

"It doesn't matter which," Chen said when he saw Nova's confusion. "It's in the 'press the any key' mode. Just move one."

Nova just shrugged and slid one of the stones to a different socket. There was a click as the letters vanished from the screen.

"Bootsplash it is," Chen concluded, knowing an AI would vanish just because a command was entered. "Terra, I'm just going to take the memory crystal." Nova didn't respond. "Terra?" It was only then they realized something was wrong. Nova still had her hand on the Asgard stone, her eyes wide as her body began to tremble. It only took a few more moments before they heard the unmistakable noise of electrical crackling as strings of electricity jumped from the stone to her hand. Her body began shaking uncontrollably as if she was having a seizure.

"Major!" Martin yelled shock, reaching to pull her away. The moment he put his hands on her, the computer terminal exploded in a firework of sparks. The screen shattered, the glass-like material raining to the ground. Chen and Corin were knocked off their feet as Nova and Martin flew backwards into the wall.

"What just happened?" Martin demanded to know, rushing to Nova's side.

"I don't know," Chen said. "I've never seen Asgard technology do this."

"We need to get her back to the Millennium," Martin said. "Major, can you hear me? Major!"


	2. Chapter 2

**"What motivates a villain makes them interesting. Methods they use to achieve their respective ends are what makes them dangerous." I was watching the Goa'uld vs Wraith video when I came across this comment and I cannot tell you how true this is. With the Ror'char, I wanted to create a more menacing ground force. Like, as cool as the Jaffa were, they are about as competent as the stormtroopers. I wanted to create an enemy that brought back the feeling we got when we saw serpent guards march through the gate in "Children of the Gods". Please review and tell me what you think.**

The grassy green hills of the planet seemed peaceful, even with the remains of the Asgard colony in the background. But that illusion as peace was shattered as two Ror'char troopers marched over the hill, scanning the area with their weapons raised. One eyed a hole in the ground, knowing that a part of the ceiling of a buried Asgard structure had given way.

"Nothing to report," the trooper said on his radio, his grotesque voice echoing from his helmet.

"Roger," another voice responded. "Keep your eyes open." The two troopers continued walking, not knowing that they were being watched from that hole.

Corin watched as a fine trickle of dust and sand seeped through the hole from the troopers' footsteps as they left.

"We can't keep going on like this," Corin said to Martin, looking at the team. They had finally settled in a small room with two Asgard computer terminals along the walls and a circular platform at the center. "Sooner or later they're gonna find us."

Corin looked around the room. He wished he could just dive into the Asgard texts in the computer but he knew that this wasn't the time.

Nova's eyes suddenly opened as she awoke with a gasp. She looked around wildly, trying to take everything in all at once.

"Major," Martin said when he saw that she was awake.

"Give me an update, Martin," she said quickly. Martin was almost stunned by her tone of voice. Even on the ground, falling unconscious every few minutes, and unable to walk, she still maintained her rugged command.

"We found a room to take shelter in," Martin explained. "I'm guessing about fifteen Ror'char troopers. They're searching the area."

"And they apparently soak up bullets like a sponge," Chen commented grimly.

"Their armor's tough but it's not bullet proof," Martin corrected, remembering his encounter of the Ror'char on Millennium. "Maintain fire on the bloke and they fall."

"Hold on," Nova suddenly said. "It can't be that tough. On Millennium, I killed one with a knife." Martin looked at in her in utter confusion.

"That's impossible," Martin said, remembering the firefight was he part of on the Millennium. "These guys need two to three bursts to kill."

"Armor tough enough to soak bullets but weak enough it can't take a knife?" Chen asked. Everyone looked at him when he said this. His tone made it sound like he had an answer. "When I worked at Area 51, a project I was working on was to mix the protective properties of the Goa'uld force shield with the nano-bots of the replicators to make a new type of armor." Nova and Martin gave a nod while Corin just stared in confusion.

"Goa'uld?" he repeated. "Replicators? Did I miss reading something?"

"We can explain everything later," Nova quickly said.

"You guys know the basics of the Goa'uld force shield, right?" Chen continued.

"Harder you hit the bloody thing the harder it…blocks," Martin said. "We know."

"The goal of the project was to make an armor capable of this. It would've been much easier and cheaper to make than shield generators but produce the same result. Soft on regular duty; the moment someone tries to shoot the person it'll harden into something as tough as trinium."

"But it won't harden at a knife?" Martin asked, scoffing at the idea of an armor that could stop bullet and lasers but not knives.

"We'd have to increase the sensitivity of the armor," Chen explained. "By the time it registers knives, it registers almost everything too."

"Sounds like a bloody flawed design. Any other weaknesses in the armor we should know of?"

"So we know a little more about what we're dealing with," Nova said, breaking up the pair. "Chen, Corin, I want you two to go to the stargate. If it's guarded, head back. We'll have a better idea of what we're dealing with."

"And if it's not?" Corin had to ask.

"Then go back to Millennium," Nova said firmly. "See if General Mercer will send a rescue."

"What about you two?" Steven asked, knowing that Martin and Nova would not last if the Ror'char find them.

"I can't go back to the Millennium," Nova said. Her teammates stared at her in confusion. "I've been compromised," she explained. "I wasn't sure until now but, whatever was happening with the Asgard computer...there's something inside me."

"You can't be sure about that, Major," Martin said, shaking his head in disbelief.

"I am sure!" Terra snapped. "Every time I go unconscious I can feel in the back of my mind. Something jumped from the Asgard computer and into me."

"And it might do the same if we take her back to Millennium," Chen said, filling in the blanks. Nova nodded.

"What is it?" Corin had to ask. "Asgard defense system?"

"I don't know. But we can't stay here and, until I can get it out of me, I can't go back. This is an order," Nova said firmly. "If we want a way of getting out of this, we need back up." Corin stared at her. He wanted to protest but knew she was probably right.

"Which way out then?" Corin asked, taking out his pistol. Chen didn't answer; he just looked at the hole the ceiling.

"Give me a boost," Chen said, stepping under the hole before taking a moment to think about it. "I'll give you a boost." Corin liked the sound of that better. Chen was stronger and more fit than Corin was, not to mention heavier, so it made more sense if Chen helped Corin up first.

Corin cautiously popped his head out, looking around to make sure there weren't any Ror'char around.

"We're good," he said, hauling himself out of hole and onto the surface. Chen groaned in annoyance as loose soil rained on his head. Corin lowered his hand and pulled Chen up to the surface. They carefully scanned the area, making sure there weren't any troopers hiding somewhere.

"Let's go," Chen said, gesturing toward the forest at the edge of the Asgard city. The two of them quickly made their way to the tree line over the uneven terrain. They were completely open. If the Ror'char saw them, there was no place to hide or take cover. They had to get to the tree line as fast as possible. They didn't feel safe until they were in the confines of the timberland.

It was only in the trees they slowed their pace to a steady walk. Running seemed like a better idea since they were pressed for time, but it might also alert any nearby Ror'char troopers to where they were.

"What's the deal with these guys anyways?" Chen asked, keeping his voice low. He ducked under a tree branch as he continued talking. "You said the Ror'char already have control over most of this galaxy. What's there left to conquer?"

Corin weaved through the knee-high grass as he explained, "The Ror'char nation is in a state of civil war. It's been broken up into at least a dozen different factions with a different leader, but their core ideal is still the same: absolute control."

"So the guys we've been fighting?" Chen asked, stepping over a log in his path.

"They're from the faction I'm from," Corin answered. "It's led by a man named Vosk, President Vosk."

"And we have at least a dozen other Ror'char factions?" Chen asked. "Peachy…" Chen raised his right hand, telling Corin to stop. They both stooped down as they neared the stargate, looking for any guards.

"I don't see anyone," Corin said.

"Yeah, it looks clear," Chen said suspiciously. He didn't like it. The Ror'char knew they were on the planet and yet they didn't put any guards by the stargate. Still, they couldn't just sit there and stare.

"Let's go," Corin said, getting up. Chen reached up and pulled him back down.

"You don't find this a little odd?" he asked. "No guards?"

Before either of them could say a word, they heard the familiar rumble as the stargate began to activate, the white chevrons clamped to the sides lighting up. The wall of water rushed forth from the ring before settling back into the event horizon in a glittering puddle of water.

"Now what?" Steven groaned. He and Corin got ready to run, expecting more troopers to come through. Instead, a massive dull gray pod flew through the event horizon, just barely fitting through the gate. The moment the ship was through the two sides of the pod extended outward, pushed out by a thick struts, forming a massive pair of wings, and it took off. A shimmering green shield appeared around the ship as it tore through the trees, protecting the vessel from harm as it burst out of the forest and into the sky. Corin ducked and covered his face as the ship kicked up a cloud of dirt over them as it flew off. Broken timber and leaves rained to the ground.

"What was that?" Chen asked in panic.

"Ror'char stryker," Corin yelled, looking up at the sky. "They probably brought it to survey the ruins. They probably also have a ship on the way." Chen turned to look at the hole through the trees that the stryker just created. As he adjusted himself, something else caught his eye.

"Crap," he muttered when he realized it was a Ror'char trooper aiming his weapon at them. The trooper must have been a guard silently watching the gate, ready to shoot whoever tried to dial.

"Time to go!" Chen yelled as he grabbed Corin and yanked him to his feet. It was just in time. There was an electrifying crack as a blue bolt of energy shot out of the rifle and hit the ground near them. They didn't even bother shielding their faces as they ran from the fountain of dirt that erupted from the impact. Seeing his target run, the Ror'char trooper immediately went after them.

Chen whipped around just long enough to aim and fire his P90, the gunfire echoing through the forest. The trooper ducked behind a tree as the bullets tore through the foliage around him. Splinters flew off the tree as the bullets shredded through the bark.

Corin yanked out his pistol, took aim, and froze. Firing a gun at a paper target was one thing but firing at a living being was another.

There was another crack as a blue bolt of energy flew through the trees. Another trooper was running through the forest toward them.

Without another word, Chen turned and took off, grabbing Corin and dragging Nevec along. He and Corin could hear the two troopers chasing after them, firing their weapons in a desperate attempt to hit their target. The two of them weaved through the trees. The blue energy bolts rammed into the trees, a fountain of fire spewing from the impact. Hitting a moving target while on the move was hard enough but now their targets were running through a forest of cover. Chen felt confident that the Ror'char troopers would not hit their mark.

"Hit the trees, max yield!" one of the troopers suddenly yelled. There was another crack as the bolt of energy flew, not at them but, past them, hitting the tree in front of them in an explosion of splinters. Corin yelled in shock as he brought himself to a halt just as the tree toppled over right in front of him.

It was only then they realized what the new tactic was. Hitting them while they were running through a forest was near impossible, so they were shooting down the trees instead.

Chen ducked as a tree fell right beside him, a cloud of dust jumping up when it hit the ground. Corin jumped over the fallen log in a desperate attempt to keep up. Another blue bolt of energy hit the one in front of them, sending it falling to the ground. Chen slid right under right before it hit the ground while Corin had to run around it. They could see the clearing in the distance but it didn't bring any relief. On the hills, they were open to fire. And it got worse…

"Crap!" Chen yelled in shock when he got to the clearing, realizing there was a steep drop between the forest and the hills. Corin soon caught up and saw the valley. They couldn't take their time sliding down it. The only way they could make it to the bottom without getting shot was to completely throw themselves over the edge.

There was a crack as another blue energy bolt hit the tree right next to them. Chen jumped back as it toppled over, landing where he was just a few seconds ago. Corin was safe, or so he thought. It was only after the tree had hit the ground he realized that the impact had shaken loose the soil beneath his feet. The ground soon gave way. He yelled in shock as he found himself tumbling head over heels into the chasm. The ground beneath the fallen tree gave way as well and the massive log rolled into the ravine with Corin beneath it.

"Corin!" Chen yelled. He wanted to jump down and see if his friend was ok. He kept telling himself that there was a chance Corin wasn't killed by the tumbling log. But he couldn't, not with the two Ror'char troopers behind him. Chen turned and ran alongside the edge of the valley, trying to find an easier way into the ruins.

The two troopers soon reached the scene. They paused for a moment as they analyzed what happened.

"Check it out," one of the troopers said, gesturing toward the bottom of the valley. "I'll remain in pursuit."

"Affirmative."

The trooper then took off through the forest after Chen while the other took out a small handle from his pouch. There was a vicious click as a long blade shot out of the handle, humming once it was fully extended. The troopers stabbed the blade into the ground, the soil and rock clearing out of the way of the tip. The trooper then slid into the valley, using his sword as an anchor to slow his descent. It was time to see if the human at the bottom lived or not.

-.-

Nova had fallen unconscious and was living her memories again. She had been a part of SG-23 for over two years now in Earth's ongoing war against the Lucian Alliance. She was in the briefing room with at least four other SG teams.

"Anyone know what this is about?" Bonner asked impatiently, scratching his bald head. "I was trying to sort out the intelligence reports we got from our last mission about Lucian moles."

"I was busy reminding Harding to finish writing his mission reports," Nova added in.

"I was going to write them later," Harding said innocently. "Besides, General Landry was busy choosing people to oversee the training for the new recruits."

"And you were one of them," Nova guessed.

"You doubt my teaching skills?"

"I was busy…doing something very important…in the mess hall," Harrison added, feeling like he should put in his own line.

"I think we all knew that," Bonner said. Harrison shot Bonner a dirty look at that statement.

"They brought back the donuts," Harrison defensively. "I needed to make sure I got some before everyone else takes them all."

"Hey, you were the reason they ran out of cake last time," Bonner pointed out. "Imagine how many angry SGC personnel there were. They take a lunch break after a long morning of work and there's no more cake."

"And the green jello the week before," Harding added. "Don't forget the green jello."

"Hey, not everyone can be like GI Jane over here," Harrison argued, gesturing toward Nova. "She's the only person on this base that eats like one sweet a week."

"Gentlemen!" a stern voice echoed as General Landry walked up the stairwell. Nova had to keep her jaw from dropping when Colonel Mitchell followed him in. He may not have been part of the original legendary SG-1 but he was still SG-1.

"Alright boys!" he announced loudly as the display came on. An image of a strange purple corn came on screen. "We've recently come across some intel regarding the Lucian Alliance's production of kassa."

"I wonder what kassa popcorn tastes like," Harrison muttered to himself.

"Most importantly, we learned of the address of another major kassa farm." There was a click as the image of a large village appeared on screen. Another click and the picture showed the village from a different angle. "The people there don't like the Alliance but are too afraid to revolt back. If we liberate the townspeople from the Lucian Alliance we'll have crippled the Alliance's kassa production. SG-12 and 23 will be stationed in the town. If we can root out the Lucian Alliance, we're going to want to make sure the townsfolk are safe. SG-3 will begin burning the kassa fields, see if we can catch anyone's attention. SG-18 and 5 will remain to guard the gate. We're hitting their little stash of drugs so we can count on them trying to stop us. The Odyssey will be in orbit around the planet and Teal'c said that we can count on five ha'taks lending us a hand too."

Nova kept her mind sharp as she listened to the rest of the briefing. SG 23 was both a military and exploration team so they had to help with major military operations such as this.

"Any questions?" Mitchell asked. Everyone exchanged glances but no one said anything.

"Sir," Nova suddenly spoke up. Everyone in the room turned their attention to her. "I must ask. The Lucian Alliance was formed as a result of the power vacuum left behind by the Goa'uld. If we do manage to defeat the Lucian Alliance, what's to say another coalition won't be formed by the power vacuum they leave behind?"

Mitchell gave a sigh, not liking the answer.

"We don't," he said. "There's talk about Earth filling the power vacuum to maintain order." The SG teams in the room began whispering among themselves, not liking the idea of that.

"Look, I don't like it any more than you," Mitchell interjected. "But, we can't worry about that; we have to focus on beating one bad guy at a time." Nova gave the colonel an unamused stare. They started the stargate program to defend earth, not try to run the whole galaxy. A position like that was just begging to be abused. She didn't like that the concept was even on the table.

-.-

Corin gave a cough as the cloud of dirt settled on his chest and face. He looked up at the log, which was now wedged between the slopes of the valley just barely an inch from him. He could not believe how lucky he was. He looked at the countless branches that had been thrust into the ground that could have easily impaled him. He crawled out from under the log, feeling the welcoming light of the sun as he made it out; but that wasn't the only thing welcoming him. Once he was out, he found himself staring at the tip of a Ror'char trooper's sword. Soil rolled down the edge of the hill as more troopers slid down, aiming their weapons at Corin once they were at the bottom.

Corin gave a small sigh. When he chose to run from the Ror'char he knew that they might eventually catch up to him. He guessed this was it. He got ready for his end.

"Stand down," a familiar voice called. It was a cold voice that had a snake-like hiss. The Ror'char troopers immediately lowered their weapons as Exodan Krell emerged from the hills with a smile on his face. "This one's an old friend."

"Krell," Corin breathed angrily.

"It's good to see you again, Corin Nevec."

-.-

Martin looked at Nova helplessly, not sure what to do other than wait. He knew that strange things and unusual situations came with the territory of exploring other planets. Still, he had never seen anything like this.

"INCOMING!" Martin heard a voice yell down the hall. He took aim, ready for whatever was coming. Chen suddenly rounded the corner, ducking as a blue bolt of energy hit the wall beside him in a fountain of sparks and fire. He was in position. Chen threw himself to the ground, so Martin would have a clear line of fire, as he brought up his own P90.

The moment the Ror'char trooper appeared from around the corner, they fired; a storm of bullets ripping through the Ror'char armor, a cloud of gray dust flying off the chest plate as the trooper struggled to aim his weapon through the gunfire. Charles and Steven continued firing as the trooper roared in pain, the helmet distorting his yell into a demonic howl as he finally fell to the ground, a plume of smoke rising from his chest.

"Did we get him this time?" Chen asked in annoyance. They slowly walked toward the body of the Ror'char trooper, ready to shoot again if he was still alive. Martin nudged the body with his foot. No movement.

"Where's Corin?" Martin asked. Chen was still out of breath, his chest heaving uncontrollably, from all the running.

"I don't know," Chen finally said. "I think the Ror'char have him."

-.-

Corin expected a lot of things to happen to him if he was ever caught by the Ror'char again, but this was not one of them.

He was sitting fairly comfortably on a fallen log outside. Only one trooper was guarding him and they had actually given him some food to eat. He slowly ate away at the meal bar that had been handed to him. He had even been allowed to keep his pistol.

There was a rustle as Krell waded through the grassy hills and slowly walked up to him.

"Overlord," the trooper guarding Corin greeted. "The stryker has finished surveying the ruins."

"Tell it to deploy a ring platform," Krell ordered. "The frigate should arrive soon."

"Yes sir."

Krell turned his attention back to Corin. The gray-skinned alien took out his sword as he walked up to Corin, gently twirling his weapon in the air. The narrow but long metal blade hummed with power.

"Impressive, isn't it?" Krell asked Corin as he brandished his sword. "It's a new addition to our arsenal. Based off of Furling technology; the molecules in the blade vibrate so fast that it cuts through most matter with ease. It appears that, just as the Alterans and Asgard rely on crystals, Furling technology relies on what appears to be simple stone or metal." Corin didn't answer, not caring much about the sword.

Krell silently walked over to Corin, stooping down in front of Nevec. This close, Corin could see almost every detail of Krell's face. With his gray skin, sunken oily black eyes, and rigid face, he looked like a goblin.

There was a loud click as Krell retracted the sword blade back into the handle.

"Leave us," Krell told the trooper, putting the handle in his coat. The trooper gave a single nod and walked off.

"I must admit, Corin," Krell said as the Ror'char trooper disappeared from sight. "When I discovered that you had joined this band of renegades I thought you only sought an escape from us. I did not expect that you would be conducting missions with them." Corin wanted to protest but couldn't think of how to.

"You didn't kill me," Corin said, surprised that Krell let him live, more surprised that Krell was actually treating him so well.

"It was not necessary," Krell said. "As difficult as it is to believe, we are not killers, Corin." Corin scoffed at that comment. "We are peacekeepers. We are here to protect and watch over this galaxy."

"Peacekeepers?" Corin repeated, stunned by what Krell was saying.

"Indeed," Krell hissed. "Primitives often speak of the dream of world peace. The Ror'char offer more: eternal galactic peace. All actions the Ror'char have taken are aimed at that goal."

Corin had enough. He has always been fed Ror'char propaganda but this time he was going to talk back. He was fed up listening to the same thing over and over again and wasn't going to keep quiet this time.

"The galaxy is falling apart!" Corin yelled angrily. "Pirates and gangs run a third of it. A quarter of it is just different warring nations, and the Ror'char are fighting each other!" There was a time when Corin wouldn't have snapped at a Ror'char official out of fear of being accused of treason. This time, he didn't care.

"And what of each individual Ror'char nation?" Krell asked calmly in the same snake-like hiss, his oily black eyes staring at Corin. "What of the Ror'char citizens? What of the Ror'char society? Crime is a rarity. As is unemployment. The moment a person is born into a Ror'char society, his future is guaranteed. He is guaranteed an education, a job, a life. He will grow up never knowing the threat of losing everything he holds dear. He will grow up never knowing what it is like to lose a loved one at the hands of a criminal. For that matter, there is no need to turn to crime. Every individual is guaranteed enough money and resources to live in relative happiness."

"And at what cost?" Corin asked. "You monitor and control every aspect of peoples' lives. You tell people how to live."

"A necessary sacrifice," Krell stated. "The Ror'char need to know every detail of their society in order to plan out the lives of the people to ensure they live happy lives."

"These aren't chess pieces. They have right to be free, to choose their own lives."

"And yet, they are incapable of making the right choice. You give a society freedom, they will choose crime, murder, prejudice, and war. Like a parent teaching misbehaving children, we must tell them what to do or they will go back to fighting each other."

"And the propaganda?" Corin asked. "The indoctrination, the brainwashing since childhood? Or are those just facts that we should believe?"

"Another necessary sacrifice," Krell said. Corin felt his jaw drop, stunned that Krell knew that the things being told to them was just propaganda. Every person he knew in the Ror'char Empire believed what they were told. Corin was stunned that Krell actually saw past the lies.

"And what about killing people who don't agree?" Corin huffed. "Is that also a necessary sacrifice?" Krell didn't immediately answer, as if he was thinking about how to put it.

"Tell me, what are the roots of all conflict?" Krell asked. "Why do people fight?" Corin just stared, not wanting to answer. "Resources? One wants something so he tries to take it from another. The Ror'char will distribute the resources to those who need them. What about status? One wants to ascertain a certain position so he fights another for it. The Ror'char will give everyone a position of status where they can live happy."

"That doesn't explain why you have to kill people who disagree," Corin interjected.

"That is the other root of all conflict," Krell explained. "Difference in belief. People fight because they believe in different things. Let us use your wife, Andrea, as an example." Corin felt his fists clench when Krell mentioned Andrea. He didn't want to hear her name from Krell's mouth when he was the one who killed her.

"What about her?" Corin asked.

"She opposed Ror'char rule," Krell pointed out. "Let's say we had let her live. What would have happened? She was very outspoken about her position. She would have told others. People would listen. Soon, there would be people who agree with her. There would be division, then conflict, then violence. There is far too much at stake to let one person spread dissension or insurrection among the populace. We must make sure our nations remain undivided if we hope to ever have peace."

"Well, guess there'd be no point to reeducation camps if there wasn't anyone to reeducate," Corin scoffed.

"As you said, the galaxy is in disarray. It is imperative we end the civil war that has engulfed the Ror'char and return to maintaining peace and order in the galaxy. And what of the Harvesters, Corin?" The mere mention of the Harvesters sent chills down Corin's spine. "You talk about the lives we take. What of the lives we save? How many people have died because of Harvester raids? How many people are now safe because we shield them from these raids?"

"Last I checked, you guys didn't make much progress on that front either."

"The Harvesters vastly outnumber us. We must focus on protecting our own territories first and foremost. We cannot afford to be brash or we may begin losing territory to the Harvesters." Krell stood up, looking around the landscape, his hat keeping the sun out of his eyes.

A stryker swooped across the hills, dropping a huge platform on the ground before flying away. The frigate is nearly here.

"There is a saying that all cultures seem to share," Krell said as he watched the platform hit the ground. "With power comes responsibility. The Ror'char have the power to ensure peace and safety throughout this galaxy; we have the responsibility to make sure that happens. We will maintain order in the galaxy whether it likes it or not."

-.-

Martin slid his backpack under Nova's head. It wasn't a pillow but it was the best he could do. He took out her nine millimeter pistol and slid it into a pocket. They were going to need all the firepower they could get.

While he was doing that, Corin was busy examining the Ror'char rifle. He held in his hand, aimed it down the hall, even flipped into the air.

"I don't think now's the best time to be testing out your new toy, mate," Martin said.

"I'm trying to find out what we're up against," Chen said as he examined the rifle. "We gathered plenty of Ror'char technology from our battle on the Millennium but it was all severely damaged." Chen remembered how he increased the artificial gravity to kill the Ror'char troopers occupying Millennium.

"Well, you did kinda smush 'em," Martin pointed out. "The clean-up crew hates you by the way."

"I'm overwhelmed with guilt," Chen scoffed sarcastically.

"How do you even fire that thing?" Martin wondered. Chen gave Martin an agitated look.

"Well, I don't think it's the trigger right here the fires the weapon," Chen remarked with the same agitated sarcasm. "But, that doesn't explain what this does." Chen pointed at a dial on the side of the weapon. Martin just shrugged.

Chen turned the dial counter-clockwise as far as it would go, aimed down the hall, and pulled the trigger. Nothing. Martin gave a stifled laugh.

"You break it again, mate?" Martin asked.

"I think that's just the safety," Chen said, adjusting the dial one notch. He aimed again and fired. This time a small blue pellet of energy shot out of it, hitting the wall. There was a quick flash as the pellet burned up in a small ball of fire, leaving a large scorch mark where it hit.

"Stun setting?" Martin guessed with a shrug.

"More like the 'well done' setting," Chen grumbled. If that blast could scorch the wall so badly, he could hardly imagine what a wound would look like.

Chen adjusted the dial again and fired. The blue bolt shot out of the rifle and hit the wall, a shower of sparks and a fountain of fire spewed from the impact.

"I think we all know what that does," Martin remarked. They had seen that firing mode too many times.

Chen adjusted the dial one last time and fired. The bolt that fired was much larger than the last. Martin and Chen jumped back in shock when the bolt that hit the wall exploded, a barrage of flames erupting from the point of impact. Chen covered his head as dust and debris flew down the hall and in his face. Burning pieces of debris rolled across the ground.

"Bugger me," Martin muttered in shock when he saw this. Chen immediately turned the dial back to safety. "So we learned the Ror'char use BFG's."

"I'm not so sure," Chen said, taking another look at the weapon.

"Meaning?"

"Well, I can't be sure until I get it back to a lab but…"

"But?" Martin asked.

"Will you just wait," Chen snapped, getting annoyed at Martin's fussing. "Look, I've gone through the copy of the Asgard database that we brought with us. I've looked at the schematics for the ion guns they used to use and this thing looks almost exactly like one."

"Ion guns?" Martin repeated. "You mean those cannons the Asgard used to have on their ship?"

"Before they were replaced with the plasma beams, yes," Chen said with a nod. "Like I said, I'm not sure until I can get this to a lab but this rifle seemed like a miniature version of the ion guns. It's like, whoever built this based their design off of them."

"So…what does this mean?" Martin asked, not understanding the implications.

"Corin told us that the Ror'char have been studying technology of the Alliance of Four Great Races before he was even born," Chen said grimly. "I think we may have underestimated how far they've advanced because of it."

"We've made advancements from Alliance stuff too," Martin pointed out.

"We've made advancement from Asgard technology and a scarce understanding of and Ancient technology," Chen corrected. "These guys have had at least a hundred year head start. Who knows how much Alliance technology they've already incorporated? They have a ZPG based off the ZPM, now they have this ion rifle from the Asgard ion guns. They may not be as advanced as the Alliance but they're trying to get there. They might even have soldiers with Nox powers by now." Just the mere thought of that sent chills down Chen's spine.

"Corin told me that all the Ror'char factions are at war and that Alliance technology could tip the balance," Martin added. "That makes this a massive arms race over who can integrate Alliance technology the fastest."

-.-

An unconscious Nova relived her last mission at the SGC. After so many missions with SG-23, after visiting so many words, this was the day everything changed. This was the mission that would change everything.

She ran through the buildings of the village, eying every window and balcony with suspicion. Frightened villagers ran inside. The presence of SG soldiers in a Lucian Alliance controlled village would probably result in a firefight. Nova knew this. She also knew that any one of these villagers could be a Lucian Alliance spy that would ambush them when they least expect it.

"SG-3's begun burning the kassa fields," Mitchell's voice crackled through the radio. "Everyone, stay on your toes."

Nova looked around. She could see Harding hiding behind the wall of a hut. Bonner was hiding behind a cart full of hay. Harrison casually walked through the town, muttering angrily how he was chosen for bait.

Nova could see the plumes of smoke rise from the kassa fields. Everyone knew how valuable kassa was to the Lucian Alliance. It would only be a matter of time before the gangs arrived to protect their assets. The Alliance thugs would be the first to react and she had to be ready. She was ready…for the next fifteen minutes. She was growing impatient and so was everyone else. They thought the Alliance would arrive in force to protect their kassa.

She could see the plumes of smoke rising from the kassa fields; they were still burning. Where was the Lucian Alliance?

"Any activity?" Harding impatiently asked through the radio. No response. "Colonel Reynolds? Mitchell?" No response. "We're dying of boredom here." No response. Harrison looked at Harding nervously.

Nova could see the members of SG-18 patrolling the streets too, looking equally worried.

"I don't like the looks of this," Harrison told Harding as he scanned the buildings. "They might be jamming our radios."

"Which means they're here," Harding said.

Even the villagers seemed to have vanished. Harding knew the villagers were all hiding inside their houses but it didn't make the seemingly empty village any less creepy. They both instinctively raised their rifles when they saw movement from the corner of their eye. An old man was slowly limping through the street, huffing as he struggled to use his cane to help him walk. He looked at the SG teams, his face covered by his large hooded cloak.

"What's he doing out here?" Bonner wondered out loud.

"We have to get him off the streets," Nova said. "If a firefight breaks out, he's going to get hurt." Harding nodded in agreement.

"Keep your eyes peeled," he said as he walked up to the old man.

"Hey, we gotta get off the street," Harding told the old man.

Bonner kept his eye on the farmhouse. It looked like the perfect place to hide a gang of Lucian thugs. Nova had her eyes on the tavern, suspecting some Lucian pirates had disguised themselves as the villagers and were hiding there.

That's when she saw it.

"Harding!" Nova yelled. Harding looked up and saw a Lucian pirate aiming at them from the balcony. He didn't hesitate to raise his m16 and fire. The silence in the village shattered like glass as he fired on the pirate. The pirate ducked back inside as the bullets shredded the windowsill.

Gunfire suddenly erupted from all the buildings, bullets raining down on the SG teams. Harrison dove under the cart of hay as bullets easily tore through it. Nova fell to the ground as bullets grazed her arms. SG-18 dove for cover behind anything they could find, firing back at the Lucian Alliance thugs.

Nova always wished the Lucian Alliance had stuck to the clunky staff weapons instead of using firearms.

She fired at a balcony where a Lucian pirate was. A single burst of bullets was all it took. The Lucian pirate yelled in pain before falling over the railing. Harding fired in all directions, trying to protect himself from the storm of bullets. He didn't even pay attention as the old man he didn't even notice the man he was helping earlier reach in his cloak and take out a Lucian Alliance pistol.

Despite the deafening storm of gunfire around him, it was this single bang that was the loudest. Harding looked at the old man in surprise as he felt the warm blood drip down his uniform. There was another bang and Harding fell to his knees.

"Harding!" Nova yelled. The old man tried to turn his gun on her but was immediately riddled with bullets as Nova charged at them. She slid down beside Harding as he began to cough up blood.

"Well, fun while it lasted," he said with smile.

"It's going to last a lot longer," she said, dragging Harding to the side of the building. They were at least partially under cover there.

"C'mon, Captain," Harding said with a smile, wiping the blood from his mouth. "I think we both know this is it." Harding slumped over. "It makes you think about all those medical stories you hear: the guy who took a bullet to the brain and didn't know for two weeks, the woman who had a pipe go straight through her heart and survived, the guy who died because one bullet hit some important artery or something in his foot." Harding tried to laugh but just coughed up more blood.

Nova knew the firefight was still going but she couldn't hear it. She didn't care about it. The only thing that was important right now was right in front of her.

"You can add your story to theirs," she said, fumbling through her equipment for anything that could help. Harding reached up and put a firm hand on her shoulder. She stopped and looked at him.

"It's better this way," he said. "I wasn't going to last long with all the smoking I do. Rather die by a bullet than a bunch of rolled up pieces of paper." Nova wasn't going to take this. She wasn't going to listen to this. SG-23 had been through too much together. The team was not going to lose someone now.

"Captain," Harding said with one last smile. "It's your team now." The smile never left his face as his head gently drifted back and fell limp. Nova stared, still refusing to believe what just happened. But, it did happen. Shouldn't change what had just happened.

"Fall back!" a voice yelled as bullets continued raining down on SG-18 and SG-23. They were surrounded, outnumbered, outgunned, they had lost communications with Odyssey, SG-3, and the teams guarding the gate, and were being hailed by weapons fire. "Fall back!"

Nova clenched her fist and stood up. She rushed out in front of the retreating SG teams.

"Hold your positions!" she said firmly, ignoring the bullets that just barely missed her head. The two teams stared at her in disbelief. "We need to get out of the street! SG-18, secure the tavern! It's the most easily defensible location. Harrison, Bonner, we're taking the inn. It's three stories tall and it'll give us a vantage point over everything else!" They just stared at her. "I gave you an order, let's move!"

"Yes ma'am!" SG-18 all suddenly said, charging back into the village. Harrison and Bonner kept looking at her.

"What about the Colonel?" Bonner asked.

"He'll be watching us fight," she said, cocking her M16. "SG-23, let's roll out."

-.-

"Here," Chen said, sliding to Martin his P90. "I'm keeping this," Steven added, picking up the ion rifle.

"What am I supposed to use two of these?!" Martin exclaimed, picking up the second P90.

"Dual wield," Chen suggested as he turned the dial on the ion rifle to the medium setting.

"That only works in the movies," Martin said, trying to find out how he could aim two P90's at once.

"Spray then," Chen said, not caring how Martin would shoot it. He was the best shot on the team; he'd find a way. They were so busy chatting that they didn't even notice Nova's eyes flutter open. She looked at Chen and Martin with a blank stare before slowly standing up. Nova scanned the room with the same blank stare as she began to slowly make her way to the center of the room, right between the two Asgard terminals.

"Major?"

Martin and Chen finally noticed Nova walking around but she did not react. Her emotionless expression remained the same as she eyed the two of them.

"Charles, something's not right," Chen said, slowly raising the ion rifle. Nova slowly cocked her in curiosity.

"You think it's the entity?" Martin wondered. "The Major said that there was something inside her. You think this is it?" Without a word, Nova raised her hand into the air as if she was stretching. Chen and Martin jumped back as massive bolts of electricity shot from her fingertips and into the ceiling.

"That answer your question?" Chen yelled, covering his face as sparks exploded from the walls.

"What's it bloody doing?!" Martin yelled, not sure what to do.

"You're asking me?" Chen snapped. They didn't know if whatever was happening was dangerous and if it wasn't they'd be killing Nova for no reason.

Finally, the bolts of electricity stopped. Nova's body went limp and fell to the floor. Chen and Martin rushed to her side.

"Someone want to tell me what the hell is bloody going on here!" Martin yelled. As if to answer his question, the two Asgard computers at the side suddenly came online, lines of Asgard text scrolling down the screen.

"I'm guessing the entity decided to go home," Chen said, picking up the rifle. "Let's blow it before it suddenly decides to show us a new trick."

Hearing this, Nova's eyes suddenly opened.

"Wait!" she said, bolting upright. Martin and Chen looked at her in surprise.

"Major?" Martin asked suspiciously.

Nova just nodded. She tried to stand but found herself wobbling backwards. Martin gently helped her to her feet.

"Terra, if it's in the computers I think we should fry it before it does something else," Chen suggested, his rifle still aimed at the computer terminals.

"It's ok, Chen," Nova said, walking up to the computer terminal. "It didn't want to hurt me. It was just curious."

"What do you mean?" Chen asked. "The entity?" Chen looked at Nova, then at the computer, then back at her.

Nova cautiously walked up to the computer terminal, watching the screen.

"Hello?" she asked. There was a moment of silence before the reply came.

"Hello," the computer greeted in Terra Nova's voice.


	3. Chapter 3

**Last chapter. Appreciate any all support. I have a horrible habit of making stupid grammar mistakes if I type fast. I tried to avoid doing the same for this episode. I swear I'll go back and make the changes to previous episodes too. I'm just currently going through some personal difficulties but I will go back and make all the changes once it's all over. Anyways, please review and tell me what you think.**

**-.-**

Krell kept his eye on the sky. There was a rumble as a massive shadow began to loom through the clouds, which began to quickly darken as the winds began to pick up. He looked at the nearby Ror'char trooper.

"Sergeant, the frigate has arrived," Krell said. "Tell the men to assist in setting up."

"Sir?" the trooper asked. "What about the outlaws?"

"The ruins are our top priority," Krell explained. "Tell the men to help set up."

"Yes, sir," the trooper said obediently. Krell looked at Corin with a wicked smile. Corin just stared at the sky in horror and awe. Ror'char strykers streaked through the clouds as the massive shadow loomed ever closer.

"You going to kill me then?" Corin asked, actually hoping that answer was yes. Death would actually be the best end for him compared to all the other ways the Ror'char handled those they considered traitors.

It was only then Corin remembered the pistol they, for some reason, let him keep.

"We're not killers," Krell said. "We just need to show you the error of your ways."

-.-

In the ruins of the Asgard city, Nova, Martin, and Chen stared at the blinking monitor, stunned by what was happening. Chen still had an ion rifle aimed at the terminal, not trusting whatever was inside.

"What…what are you?" Nova stuttered. More Asgard text scrolled down the screen as the entity inside answered in her voice.

"I am alive…"

Martin couldn't help but scoff at that statement.

"I think we need a little more than that, Johnny Five," he said. There was a pause as if the entity was taking a moment to think of an answer.

"We have no name," the entity finally said, still mimicking Nova's voice. "My kind exist in an incorporeal form. We do not make use of audio communications. I only now know how to communicate thanks to the memories from the one you know as Terra Nova."

Chen and Martin instinctively glanced at Nova, who just stared in astonishment at the computer. As part of the stargate program, they expected to find all kinds of alien life forms. The Millennium Expedition knew they might find life forms stranger than they could imagine residing in another galaxy. Still, speaking to one was awe-inspiring. There was always a sense of wonder and mysticism when it came to talking to another being who lived another life style on another planet.

"Why did you do it?" Nova asked. "Why did you go into me?" Chen kept his weapon steady, still not trusting the entity in the Asgard computer.

"Protection," the entity replied, another paragraph of Asgard text scrolling down the screen.

"Protection?" Martin repeated. "From what? The Ror'char?" The entity did not respond immediately. If it actually had a body, Martin could imagine it shaking its head.

"From you," the entity answered.

"We weren't here to hurt you," Chen said, loosening his grip on the rifle.

"That had yet to be determined," the entity said. "My kind can only exist within certain physical bodies, most preferably technology. The ease of our existence depends on the technology we reside in."

"The higher the tech, the easier it is to live?" Chen guessed.

"Correct. My team came to this planet through the stargate in search of more advance technology for my people to reside."

"Considering how advanced the Asgard are, this would be perfect for you," Martin mumbled.

"How do you go through the gate?" Nova asked. It was clear that they didn't come through physically and they apparently couldn't just leave their body and come through.

"Data burst," was the entity's answer.

"Data burst?" Martin repeated. "What does that mean?" Chen nodded his head as he thought about it.

"I get it," he said instinctively. "You can't exist without a body and you can't just leave your body but you can transmit yourselves in the form of a data burst through the stargate like…like a…like a radio signal."

"I'm just gonna nod and pretend I know what you just said," Martin remarked to Chen, who shot Martin an agitated look.

"While exploring the ruins, the stargate activated once again," the entity continued explaining. "A device emerged emitting a type of radiation that is toxic to our people."

"What, the MALP?" Nova asked.

"Yes. The device you designated as MALP emitted radio waves, which are toxic to my kind."

"Radio waves aren't radiation," Martin commented, thinking of the more particle radiation.

"It's electromagnetic radiation," Chen pointed out. "Toxic?"

"Yes," the entity replied. "My team perished because of it." Nova felt a chill go down her spine at the thought of them accidentally killing innocent life forms out of ignorance. "I fled into ruins in order to protect myself," the entity continued explaining. When you arrived, I was curious. I entered the mind of one of your people to understand."

"That's why I was reliving my memories," Nova said. "You were going through everything I went through, trying to learn everything I already knew."

"I'm guessing that's also why you're using Terra's voice," Chen added. "You don't know how to communicate with a spoken language so you pick a voice that you're already familiar with."

"Wait a minute," Martin suddenly said. He went through the details in his head again, reciting everything he just heard. "An entity that lives in computers that can take over a human body and gets hurt by radio waves, I've read this before. It was in an SG mission report."

"What are you talking about?" Chen barked.

"Every SG personnel that goes through the gate has to memorize at least twenty of SG-1's mission reports," Martin explained. "I remember this. It was in one of their mission reports." Nova and Chen both turned their attention to Martin as he explained.

"It was supposed to be SG-1's next mission. They send a probe to this planet that's all machines and stuff. The MALP's radio waves apparently killed a whole bunch of these entity-things on the planet."

"So one came back through the stargate and took over the body of Major Carter," Nova finished. "I remember this mission report."

"You encountered more of my kind?" the entity suddenly burst out. The team looked at the computer in surprise.

"You know something we don't?" Chen asked. The similarities were too much of a coincidence. This entity had to be linked to entities from the Milky Way.

"Long ago, the Ror'char discovered our kind," it explained. "When they discovered us, we were a thriving civilization that lived in peace with our creators. They offered annexation into their domain. They offered us laws and codes of conduct. But, we refused. In response, they began to systematically destroy our race. In a desperate attempt to save our people, we uploaded them and sent them out amongst the stars hoping that they would find a sanctuary where they would be free of the Ror'char."

"Well, they did," Nova said reassuringly. "You're people landed in our home galaxy. They've built a thriving civilization."

"Except this guy didn't do what the blokes in the Milky Way did," Martin pointed out.

"Different circumstances," Nova said. "If aliens suddenly started dropping bombs on Earth, we'd assume it's an invasion like they did. Versus, if aliens suddenly started dropping bombs on a planet we just happen to be exploring, we'd just wonder what is going on."

"You sent a probe to the new homeworld?" the entity asked when it heard Nova's statement. Their people had fled this galaxy to escape the Ror'char and live in peace. Instead, what remained of his civilization may have found more death thanks to another race.

The team fell silent, not sure how to answer.

"We're explorers," Nova explained, hoping the truth was good enough. "We don't know what's on the other side of the stargate, so we send probes to see if it is safe." Nova could feel the entity listening to her answer. "The probe was simply our way of seeing if your planet was safe. It wasn't an attack."

"And for that, I have only your word," the entity said darkly. Chen stiffened his grip on the rifle again, ready if the entity tries to do anything. They were already having enough trouble with the Ror'char; the last thing they needed was another enemy.

"You were in my head," Nova said. "You've gone through my memory. You know I'm telling the truth." The entity fell silent. It didn't feel anger like organics but it still felt furious that more of his people may have died because of these fleshy beings. It was like a country apologizing for nuking its neighbor because an idiot pressed the wrong button. Still, the entity did go through Nova's mind and memories. He understood what these humans were doing when it happened.

"I do," it finally said. Nova gave a sigh of relief. The Millennium Expedition was sent to this galaxy to meet new races and make new allies. They were off to a good start.

"As fascinating as this is, we have more pressing concerns," Chen reminded.

"You're killing the moment, Chen," Martin remarked.

"Well, sorry if I'm the only one who remembers our situation," Chen groaned.

"Speaking of situation," Nova said. "Where's Corin?" Chen paled when he heard this.

"We think the Ror'char have him," Martin answered for Steven. Nova froze. She was the team leader; Corin was her responsibility. "But, with the entity out of you, we can get him back," Martin suggested cheerfully.

"We're also surrounded by about a dozen Ror'char troopers, have some sort of attack fighter flying around, and cut off from the gate," Chen pointed out.

"So much for trying to look on the bright side," Martin muttered.

"I tried looking on the bright side once; all it did was hurt my eyes."

"Gentlemen," Nova interrupted, breaking up the two. She turned her attention back to the entity in the computer.

"The fourth member of your team is alive," the entity said. "Ror'char soldiers are currently escorting him to the stargate." Steven, Charles, and Terra exchanged hopeful glances. As part of the computer, the entity had access to whatever Asgard sensors there were.

"We can't keep running," Nova said. "It's time we take the fight to them."

"I hate to be the realist here, but how are we gonna fight them?" Chen asked, seeing their situation as almost unwinnable.

"What weapons do we have?" Nova asked, trying to assess their situation. Martin looked at the guns in his hands as he began to list what they had.

"Two P90's, three nine mils, a Ror'char BFG..."

"Ion rifle," Chen insisted, though he had to agree BFG was an accurate description. "It's light, has next to no recoil, and three settings."

"Stun, kill, and incinerate?" Nova guessed. Martin snorted at this. He knew Nova was thinking of the only weapon the SGC ever found that had multiple settings: the particle magnum, carried by Ronon Dex, with the settings of stun, kill, and incinerate.

"No stun," Martin said. "Just 'snap', 'crackle', and 'pop'."

"Colorful analogies," Chen remarked sarcastically with a grimace. He knew Martin came up the names for the settings by imagining what hitting an actual target would look and sound like.

Nova nodded in approval, knowing that having even one advanced weapon in their arsenal would help.

"Anything else?" she asked.

"Whatever else the Ror'char bloke has on him," Martin finished. Nova leaned over the corpse of the Ror'char trooper. She reached over and gently removed the trooper's black helmet.

"Look familiar?" Nova asked as she laid her eyes on the face of the trooper. They had assumed that the trooper was human but it was only after they saw his face they realized how wrong they were.

The trooper's rigid and bony face was a dull gray. His eyes were an oily black that gave the team a blank stare. In many ways, he looked like a goblin or a demon.

"Corin told me about these blokes," Martin said when he saw the face. "He said they're called sireens, the race descended from the Asgard." Chen gave Martin a sideways look.

"That doesn't look like an Asgard," Chen said, remembering the frail gray aliens with bulbous heads.

"This might've been before they had their physical problems," Martin said with a shrug.

"Or they could've gone on a different evolutionary path," Nova said. "There's no way to know for sure. It doesn't matter." Nova began flipping through the trooper's pouches and bags on his armor.

"What about this?" she asked as she pulled out what looked like a metal bar. Chen took I from Nova and began to examine it.

"Lightsaber?" Martin asked as Chen continued examining the handle. Chen pressed a button on the side and jumped back in surprise when the blade shot out the front.

"I can work with this," Chen said with a smile. Nova quickly examined all the weapons.

"Alright, we just need to rescue Corin and get out of here," Martin said in a cheerful chirp.

"We can't!" Chen barked almost immediately after hearing that statement. Nova looked up at him for an explanation. "The Ror'char are studying Alliance technology. They've been doing it while now. We can't let them study an Asgard city. Who knows what they might learn?"

"What do you want us to do?" Martin exclaimed. "We don't have enough C4 to blow this whole city!" Nova turned to the entity in the computer.

"Can you help?" she asked. It seemed odd for her to turn to an alien entity for help but they didn't have many other options. The entity did not answer immediately.

"I can," it finally said. Nova smiled when she heard this, her mind racing as it went over everything they had.

"So, we have a plan," she said with a grin.

-.-

The forest was filled with gentle crunches as the underbrush was pushed away by the band of Ror'char troopers, including Overlord Exodan Krell. Corin had his hand on his pistol, keeping his eye on Krell as they moved through the brush. Corin knew he could kill Krell right there and right now. But, this would probably get himself killed on the spot. Then again, his fate if he just followed was much worse. Could he do it? Could he bring himself to kill? He was so hesitant to kill a Ror'char trooper earlier. But, he wasn't trying to kill all these troopers; he was only going to kill Krell.

Corin gripped the pistol. There was no going back. He pulled the weapon out of the holster and aimed it at Krell's head. The Ror'char troopers were caught completely off guard. Corin had his chance and he took it. He pulled the trigger. At least he tried to. It happened so fast that Corin didn't even realize what happened until it was too late. In one swift motion, Krell had whipped around and snatched the weapon right out of Corin's hands.

The Ror'char troopers, seeing the hostile action, stopped in their tracks and instinctively raised their weapons.

"Hold your fire," Krell calmly told his men, examining the pistol he had just taken from Corin. The troopers slowly lowered their weapons, following their orders without question.

"Projectile weapon," Krell said as he looked at the pistol. "I haven't seen a civilization use these in a long time. It's interesting that the outlaws would give you a weapon and not teach you how to use it."

"I know how to use it!" Corin snapped. Krell raised an eyebrow at that statement. He slowly held out the pistol as if he was offering it to Corin.

"Perhaps you would like to demonstrate," Krell hissed. Corin looked at the weapons suspiciously. First Krell let him keep the gun. Now, he was offering to let Corin kill him. Corin was utterly confused by why Krell would do this. Corin eyed the troopers that have formed a circle around the two of them. He cautiously gripped the Berretta's grip but Krell didn't immediately let go. Instead, the sireen slowly raised the pistol and pressed the barrel of the gun against this head. Corin didn't like this. Why was Krell offering Corin his life?

Corin wasn't going to pass this chance up. He could feel his heart pounding away in his chest like drums of war as he pulled the trigger, but Krell did it again. He had shoved the pistol out of the way right before Corin could pull the trigger, the bullet harmlessly passing by and embedding itself in a tree. Corin immediately brought the gun back to Krell's head, but the alien commander shoved it away again. Corin didn't know how many times he continued trying but Krell deflected the gun every time. Finally, Krell ended their little standoff with a kick to Nevec's stomach. Corin keeled over in pain, gripping where he got kicked.

"Faster, Corin, faster!" Krell hissed, ordering Corin the same way he would order his troopers. Corin, still keeled over, aimed his pistol again but Krell immediately stepped forward, grabbing the pistol and aiming toward the sky just as the bullet left the barrel.

"Your wife would be so disappointed in you," the alien said. Corin glared at Krell. He was worn and exhausted and didn't know if he had the strength left to try to kill the Overlord again. Corin knew that Krell was only toying with him. There was no way he could take his revenge.

Everyone was so focused on the standoff between Corin and Krell they didn't even notice Charles Martin before it was too late. Martin jumped out from behind a nearby tree, aimed his ion rifle, and fired, the blue bolt streaking through the air and hitting an unsuspecting troopers square in the chest. Everyone nearby was knocked off their feet from the sudden blast as flames poured out of the trooper's chest like water from a leaking pipe. The rifle was only set on intermediate yield but the sheer force of the bolt threw the trooper against the tree behind him.

"Hostiles!" a trooper yelled as they all began firing at Martin. Charles backed himself in the brush as much as possible as the storm of bolts quickly demolished the trees around him, wood splinters and leaves spraying into his face. Plumes of dirt flew up into the air like fountains from the bolts that hit the ground around him, a cloud of dust completely engulfing him.

Nova knew it was her turn. She appeared from behind the hills, a P90 in each hand.

Firing two weapons was not as easy as it seems. Unable to look down the sights, dual wielding guns usually means spraying and praying, something that was definitely not going to work against the armored Ror'char troopers.

She held both of her P90's sideways, bringing the sights as close together as possible, and fired. She was attacking from a different angle and the Ror'char were caught completely off guard as bullets rained on them from another direction. The trooper she was aiming was pelted with fire faster than usual. He aimed his rifle but succumbed to his wounds before he could pull the trigger.

"This fight is not for us," Krell told Corin, taking out his sword, extending the blade, and dragging Nevec off. Nova watched as Krell and Corin quickly vanished into the underbrush. This meant that they one less to fight but this also meant that they would have to chase after Corin and Krell as soon as they could.

The Ror'char troopers were distracted. They had been ambushed and were under fire from two different directions. They were not prepared for Chen to come out of the woods behind them, Ror'char sword in hand. They had completely underestimated the cutting power of the alien weapon as Chen easily cut through the Ror'char trooper in front of him.

The band of alien warriors were now being assaulted on three fronts; Nova and Martin were raining fire on them from two different directions while Chen was cutting through them up close and personal. But, they weren't moving fast enough.

"Chen!" Nova yelled through the radio over the deafening noise of gunfire. "Krell's getting away with Corin. Get after them!"

Chen brought the sword down on another trooper, the blade slicing through the helmet and the skull underneath it.

"On it!" Chen yelled, turning around and taking off. A trooper saw Chen begin to flee and took aim but Martin blasted the trooper with a bolt of energy that sent the alien soldier's smoldering corpse flying into the underbrush.

-.-

Corin wanted to fight back but he knew that he wouldn't stand a chance. Once again, Krell had beaten him in a fight. Normally, Corin wouldn't even dream about killing anyone, but Krell had personally murdered his wife on their wedding day and he wanted revenge. But, Corin knew there was no way he could ever last in a fight against Krell, especially since Krell still had his sword with him. If he wanted Krell dead, he had to catch the Overlord off guard.

"Here we are," Krell said as he dragged Corin up to the stargate. Overlord Krell walked up to the DHD and began dialing, the symbols glowing a powerful shade of milky white as the stargate began to power up, the inner ring spinning to find the next symbol.

Corin saw his chance. Krell was distracted. Nevec slowly reached for a large rock that was by his feet. The melon-sized boulder was half buried so pulling out of the ground took a little effort but he knew that one good crack would knock out anyone, no matter their race.

Exodan had just punched in the sixth chevron when Corin raised the rock high above his head, ready to bring it down on Krell. In one swift motion, Krell whipped around and swung his sword through the air, the hum of the blade turning into a loud screech as the vibrating molecules in the sharpened edge sheared through the rock like a chainsaw through a twig.

"Professor Nevec, you test my patience," Krell hissed venomously, pointing his sword at Corin.

Chen was out of time. If Krell was going to kill Corin, then Chen couldn't wait until he reached them. He had to act now.

Chen flung his sword, but not at Krell. Even if the blade was to go into the alien commander's head, he would be alive for a split second, a split second that Krell could use to kill Corin. No. Chen aimed at Krell's weapon. The Ror'char leader roared in surprise as the blade flew past his arm, slicing through the delicate handle of his sword and embedding itself in a tree. The hum of the blade soon turned into a piercing screech as the molecules in the blade began to grind against the wood, smoke seeping out of the bark as the horrid stench of burning wood filling the air.

Krell turned to face his attacker as Corin scrambled to get out of Chen's way. It was only once he was completely out of the way, Corin turned to see what was happening. Chen was locked in combat with Krell.

Martin had showed Corin plenty of martial arts movies and Corin had seen Chen practicing in the Millennium's gym. But, seeing Chen in action was something completely different.

Chen gritted his teeth as he continued fighting Krell. To the outside observer, their limbs were nothing but blurs as they tried to land a blow on the other. For Chen, with his adrenaline streaming through his veins, he could see each of Krell's moves clearly.

Every attack was blocked and countered and every counter was countered again. It was a nonstop chain of moves from both of them.

Krell raised an eyebrow in amused surprise at Chen's challenge.

"Trained…but mostly self-taught…and not half bad," Krell remarked with a smile. Chen roared furiously as he continued his nonstop barrage of attacks.

"Still," Krell added. "Unfortunately I don't have time to play." Krell suddenly pulled back as he quickly tapped a button on his arm. Chen glared at the Krell he stepped back. The wind quickly picked up as the forest was quickly filled with the sound of snapping trees. Chen looked up and saw Ror'char stryker rip through the forest, the trees shoved to the side by the ship's shield. The alien fighter came to a halt right above Krell as the bottom of ship opened up. There was a loud hum as a set of white marble rings descended from the ship.

Of course, Chen thought. The Ancients built ring technology and it was a lot smaller than an Asgard transport array, of course the Ror'char would find a way to incorporate it into their fighters.

Krell vanished in a flash of light and the rings flew back into the ship. Chen watched as the fighter rose and flew away, tearing through the trees. Chen turned to look at Corin but something else caught his eye instead. In the distance, a Ror'char trooper guarding the gate was taking aim.

Chen's eyes widened in surprise and horror. He had given all his long range weapons to Nova and Martin to help fight the troopers and he had no way of defending himself. He was defenseless against the alien soldier.

There was an electrical crack. A blew pellet of energy flew past Chen's ear, coming so close that he could feel the stinging heat, and hit the Ror'char trooper in the face with a dull thud. There was no explosion; just a snap as the pellet hit the trooper's helmet. The soldier froze solid as steam began to plume out of helmet.

Chen turned around and saw Charles Martin with the ion rifle set to its lowest yield.

"Are you crazy?!" Chen yelled, flailing his arms around. "You could've killed me!"

"You're welcome!" Martin shouted back. Chen made a face which Martin returned.

"Everyone alright?!" Nova asked as she quickly made her way down the hill.

"We're fine," Martin called back as Chen helped Corin up to his feet. Nova gave a nod.

"Dial the gate," she ordered Martin as Chen prepared his GDO. "The entity said it can overload the city's power source but we only have a few minutes before it blows." Martin held the rifle in one hand as he began dialing the gate.

The massive metal ring powered up and the worm hole quickly formed. Chen immediately punched in his GDO code.

"We're good," Chen said, giving the thumbs up, but noticed Martin was staring at something in the sky.

"Uh…what is that?!" he asked. Everyone turned to see what he was looking at. There was a rumble as the dark clouds in the sky parted like curtains on a stage and a massive black ship emerged from the haze. "Is that an Asgard mothership?!" Nova stared at the spacecraft. It wasn't an Asgard ship but she could see why Martin thought it was. The ship had a hammer-shaped head, identical to the hammer-shaped front on Asgard ships, connected to a large rigid body with a pair of struts that held out its massive wings at the back.

"Only if the Asgard shrunk their ships to the size of Al'kesh," Chen commented.

"It's a Ror'char frigate," Corin explained. "They're here to set up a base." Nova grinned when she heard this.

"We're going to have to disappoint," she said, turning toward the gate. "Let's go." The team turned and proceeded through the gate. The wormhole sent them back to the Millennium within seconds.

"Raise the barrier," Nova called out calmly as her team walked out. Hearing this, Donavan hit the button. The line at the base of the gate glowed and shot a beam of light over the surface of the gate, the metal cover forming over the wormhole. It wasn't long before a loud metal thud echoed through the gate room. Nova glanced back at the stargate as it closed, wondering about the fate of the entity that just saved their lives.

-.-

For Krell, hours had passed since his encounter with the outlaws on the planet. He was now back on a Ror'char control planet. Not begin in the field, he no longer wore his black trench coat or his armor. Instead, he now wore a black officer's uniform that made him blend into the blackness of the darkened room he was in. A large screen against the wall was playing a video of a massive saucer-shaped ship under fire, a shimmering green shield protecting it from the attacks.

"Our multiple-drone launchers lack the navigation and precision of the ancient drone weapons they were based on, but they maintain their ability to completely bypass ship's shielding," Krell explained to the bald man wearing an olive-green uniform in front of him. "After extensive studies, our scientists have developed a new shielding based off of Nox. While they lack any and all offensive capabilities, their defensive capabilities surpass the other races in the Alliance. This new shielding does simply form a static barrier of energy in front of the incoming attack. The field of energy continuously oscillates, deflecting the attacks rather than stopping it with an opposing force. Penetrating the shield would be the equivalent of shooting an arrow through a spinning fan. As a result, these shields do not fail as easily as conventional shield technology and is currently the only shielding that is capable of stopping Ancient drones." There was a click as the screen turned off and the lights turned on.

"Very impressive," the man said.

"Thank you, President Vosk," Krell hissed with a slight bow. "Our ships are already being refitted with this new shielding. This should give us an advantage over the other faction and the other civilizations in this galaxy."

"Then it may be time," Vosk said. "Time to launch an attack on the capital cities of our enemies."

"I do not believe it is," Krell said, fumbling with a small stack of papers. "I have received reports that there is a shortage of food in some of our outermost planets."

"What is this?" Vosk asked in annoyance as Krell handed the paper to him.

"Requisition forms," Krell stated. Vosk glanced over the list of items on the form.

"You are suggesting we divert our resources into food production for the outer colonies?!" Vosk asked in outrage. "We can end this war and you want to feed a bunch of commoners."

"Our war against the other factions is currently in our favor," Krell said. "We do dark things but for good reason. We must remember what is most important." Vosk felt his face grow red as he glared at his subordinate.

"I want you and your men ready for an immediate assault on our enemies or you will face the punishment of insubordination! I grow tired of your lectures of morality," Vosk growled menacingly.

"And I grow tired of your threats," Krell hissed with even more venom. "You believe you are superior because you are titled the leader of our faction. You do this for personal gain and power. I do this for higher cause. All the senior members of our military stand behind me because of this cause and, as a result, all the soldiers stand behind us. You are leader because we tolerate your existence." Krell walked up to Vosk. "Should you ever feel like threatening me again, remember this…" Krell leaned over and whispered into Vosk's ear: "I can erase you. Every video or photo with you in it altered or deleted. Every mention of your name in the books removed. Every record of you existence destroyed. The existence of your grave never known to anyone. Every person you met will be reeducated so that they never met you. You will never have existed." Krell leaned back and looked at Vosk's paper white face.

"Now if you excuse me," Krell said, taking a step back. "I must oversee the deployment of three legions." Krell gave a small bow as he turned and left, his hands folded behind his back. He slowly disappeared down a hall as he made his way through the capital building, eventually arriving at a balcony that overlooked their already active stargate. From this distance, the stargate looked like the size of a wedding ring. From this distance, the ground in front of the gate was completely black from the mass of Ror'char soldiers standing ready.

"Proceed," Krell said over the radio. With that word, the rhythmic marching of thousands of Ror'char troopers filled the air as the alien legion proceeded through the gate.

-.-

Back on the Millennium, Nova prepared for bed. It was a long day and she needed the rest. As she put her head on the pillow, she thought about all the memories she had to relive. She had such an amazing time as part of SG-23. She missed her life from back then. She missed Harding, Harrison, and Bonner and wondered what forsaken assignment Harrison and Bonner were doing by this time.

There was on more memory that she held onto. This one was particularly dear to her.

-.-

Nova stared at the stargate from the SGC control room. She wasn't used to seeing the gate room so decorated. Three flags were posted in front of the gate with a red carpet on the ramp leading to a podium with a wreath in front of it. A pair of wreaths hung behind the stargate as well. Red ribbons clung to the walls.

Nova gave a slow sigh as she straightened her blue dress uniform.

"Captain," a voice called. Nova turned around to see Bonner standing in the doorway. "I mean…Major," he corrected. "Going to need to get used to that." Nova gave a soft chuckle.

"It's ok," she said. "Don't want the title anyways."

"The Colonel would've wanted you to have it," Bonner said. "I agree." Nova glanced at the podium in the gate room where she was only a few hours ago delivering a speech about the life of Colonel Bryan Harding.

"You know," Bonner added. "If the Colonel was here, he'd probably be laughing at what they did to the gate room." Nova smiled at the statement.

"If Harding attended his own memorial, he'd probably start laughing in the middle of it," she said with a smile. Bonner held back a laugh, leaving an awkward, almost painful, silence.

"Here," Bonner said, wrapping his arms around Nova. When they broke apart, Bonner looked at Nova and said: "Lead the way, Major Terra Nova." Nova smiled and gave a nod, turning to look at the stargate again, her arms folded in front of her.

It was her team now. She knew what she had to do. She always sought to create a better future but she could not do it as a follower. If she wanted to change the world for the better, she had to be a leader and lead everyone into that brighter future. If she wanted to save lives, she would have to lead and make sure everyone survived. She was in charge now and she swore that she would work to bring about this better future for everyone.


End file.
